SnapshotOpera inspired painting depicting young lovers

Posted by Ali King, curatorial assistant | Monday May 6, 2013

SCENE is counting down that days till 100 Masters: Only in Canada opens at the Winnipeg Art Gallery on May 11.

To get a sneak peek at what's inside the crates that have been arriving for the gallery's centennial celebrations, curatorial assistant Ali King is highlighting some of the works that will be on display:

François Boucher's ability to master history, landscape, and portrait painting was matched only by his remarkable aptitude in a variety of media including painting, printmaking, tapestry, porcelain, and stage designs.

The Marquise de Pompadour was to become Boucher's most important patron, and he was later appointed premier peintre du Roi and director of the Académie française.

Les sabots is based on a scene from the opera of the same name. Here the lovers escape to the woods and relax under a clump of trees, with the young man's shoes positioned in the foreground.

Les sabots draws from a rich visual repertoire acquired in part through Boucher's tapestry designs and opera work. This landscape shows Boucher at his most luxurious in his treatment of the country landscape. Of the handful of his works in Canadian galleries, this best represents the rustic splendour of the Rococo landscape that was mastered by the artist.